Eating, Drinking, Overthinking: The Toxic Triangle of Food, Alcohol, and Depression--and How Women Can Break Free [Hardcover]

Susan Nolen-Hoeksema (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 27, 2005

From the author of Women Who Think Too Much, a groundbreaking book that uncovers a hidden source of depression in women today
Depression is a common and debilitating problem among women, though it rarely occurs in a vaccum. As Susan Nolen-Hoeksema's original research shows, overthinking--a tendency to ruminate on problems rather than to seek solutions--often co-exists with unhealthy eating habits and/or heavy drinking. In fact, 80 percent of women who report suffering from one of those also suffer from another. This groundbreaking book, written in a vivid narrative style that captures the complexities of women's lives today, explains how the three core problems of the Toxic Triangle reinforce one another, wreaking havoc on women's emotional well-being, physical health, relationships, and careers.
Escape is possible, Nolen-Hoeksema assures us, for those who are already aware that they suffer from a serious problem as well as for the hundreds of thousands of others who have not yet examined the role that bingeing and purging--on negative thoughts, food, or alcohol--plays in their lives. Nolen-Hoeksema shows women how to harness their emotional and interpersonal strengths to overcome the stress caused by a destructive relationship with food, alcohol, and overthinking so that they can fashion effective, healthier strategies for living the life they deserve.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Nolen-Hoeksema (Women Who Think Too Much) presents a theory that women who battle eating disorders, alcohol abuse and depression are really suffering from a single disorder for which she has coined the term "toxic triangle." The author claims to be among the first to recognize this (most experts, she says, choose one as the cause of the other two), but doesn't offer anything beyond her own observations as proof that this is true. The book's main strength is its excellent exploration of the impact of all three problems, individually and collectively, on women's lives. Eating disorders, alcohol abuse and depression affect women's relationships, careers, health and put them at risk for assault. Nolen-Hoeksema helps readers make sense of their past experiences and the genetic influences that can also make a difference, perhaps leading to a better understanding of their behavior. But she flounders between writing a clinical dissertation and penning a self-help book meant to guide readers to a solution. She constantly switches voices, speaking directly to the reader at some points and talking about the reader at others. Nolen-Hoeksema makes a provocative argument, but the book's lack of clinical research and cohesive narrative make it a tough sell. (Jan.)
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Review

Praise for Women Who Think Too Much:
"Groundbreaking research… Women Who Think Too Much tells why overthinking occurs, why it hurts people and how to stop." -USA Today

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.; 1st edition (December 27, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805077103
• ISBN-13: 978-0805077100
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #868,165 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Susan Nolen-Hoeksema is Professor and Chair in the Department of Psychology at Yale University. Her research focuses on depression and mood regulation. Prior to joining the faculty of Yale in 2004, she was a faculty member at University of Michigan and Stanford University. Dr. Nolen-Hoeksema has received three major teaching awards and numerous awards for her research on depression, mood regulation, and gender, including the David Shakow Early Career Award from the American Psychological Association, and the Leadership Award from the Committee on Women of the American Psychological Association. Her research has been funded by grants from private foundations and the National Institute on Mental Health. Dr. Nolen-Hoeksema has published over 100 research articles and a dozen books, including scholarly books, textbooks, and three books for the general public on women's mental health.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Stuff from a Great Psychologist, January 26, 2006

By 

Craig D. Wilcox "HRH Program Author" (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Eating, Drinking, Overthinking: The Toxic Triangle of Food, Alcohol, and Depression--and How Women Can Break Free (Hardcover)

When I saw that Susan Nolen-Hoeksema had a new book out, I had to take a look. Dr. Nolen-Hoeksema is well known to me from studying the biology and psychology of depression about ten years ago.

She has done research on "ruminative thinking", which she describes as "the tendency to respond to distress by focusing on the causes and consequences of your problems, without moving into active problem-solving." To put it more plainly-and less appetizingly-ruminative thinkers chew on thoughts excessively, like a cow chewing its cud.

Overthinking in this way can lead, in turn, to excess depression and anxiety. Then, to feel better, ruminators turn to food and alcohol. And then the process starts over, as overthinking about the overeating and drinking can occur.

Nolen-Hoeksema, along with a number of other eminent psychologists, has found that women suffer through this type of thinking at a much higher rate than men, which is at least partly responsible for women having double the rates of depression than men.

Since a lot of people are just getting over-or not getting over-the "holiday blues", I thought her book might provide particularly helpful advice for starting off the New Year. And after reading through the main premises of the book, I must say I was happy to have taken the time. Though the book is meant for women, it's also possible for men to suffer through this "toxic triangle" of eating, drinking, and overthinking, so I can recommend it to anyone who feels they may go through this damaging process, which puts tremendous strain on our bodies and can lead to heart disease, diabetes, and other disorders.

The most interesting piece of the puzzle for me is how overthinking can start a very physical stress process. Early in her career, Nolen-Hoeksema wrote many papers with Martin Seligman on the phenomenon of "explanatory style". This relates to how people explain positive or negative events to themselves.

Pessimists largely believe that they are primarily responsible for the bad things that happen to them, that it won't ever change, and that it applies to everything they do. Optimists believe the bad thing that happen to them are other people's fault, that it will go away quickly, and that the event is isolated and doesn't bleed over into other areas of their lives.

And for positive occurrences, the exact opposite happens. Pessimists believe other people had more of a role than they did, that it's short-lived, and that it won't happen to them again. Optimists believe they were directly responsible for the positive occurrence, that it will occur every time, and that it is an indication of the fact that they're good at just about everything.

With a pessimistic explanatory style and a ruminant thinking personality, the "pity party" just goes on and on and starts to relate to every area of a life. Nolen-Hoeksema presents stream of consciousness ruminations that most people can relate to by starting with a particular, isolated problem and blowing it up to be a life consuming weakness.

With her long history as an experimental psychologist, she shows exactly how this can lead to overeating and excessive drinking quite easily. She provides a mental model of how this happens that is perfectly matched to the current biological mechanisms believed to cause these harmful binges.

One of the weaknesses of books by long-time psychologists is that they are heavy on the problems and light on the solutions. This offering by Nolen-Hoeksema makes a great attempt to shed light on some solutions; however, more could be done.

The first step in any recovery, though, is to recognize that a problem exists-in this case, a misdirected and harmful thinking pattern. And Nolen-Hoeksema very clearly shows how to recognize the overthinking problem. I highly recommend the book for those who think (over overthink) that they may have this affliction.

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book For Women Who Suffer In Silence, January 30, 2006

By 

Lisa Angelettie "Content Marketing Strategist" (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Eating, Drinking, Overthinking: The Toxic Triangle of Food, Alcohol, and Depression--and How Women Can Break Free (Hardcover)

I love the fact that this book was written and done so well. This subject is very dear to me - as I am a product of a family of women who suffered from this toxic triangle. The legacy was simply passed down from generation to generation. It was a hard thing to watch - and was a major reason why I chose to be a therapist.

What I love about this book is that it addresses the very issues that many women who suffer from "depression" rarely hear when they go for counseling or read the common depression literature out there. There is usually a combination of abuse - a deadly team of alcohol, food and despair. Not just despair. And they are all interrelated and play off of each other in the most horrible way.

Not one member of my family has yet been able to break free from this bermuda triangle. Its such a waste of time. Months, years, a whole lifetime will go by and you don't know where it went. If this is you - this book will serve as a valuable resource to direct you towards solutions. It's well done. Very thought out and chock full of valuable information. I highly recommend it.

Lisa, "GirlShrink"

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent insight for the intelligent reader, July 4, 2006

By 

Tami (Bedford, TX, United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Eating, Drinking, Overthinking: The Toxic Triangle of Food, Alcohol, and Depression--and How Women Can Break Free (Hardcover)

Loved this book, I have not read the author's first book, but that did not present any problems. Susan Nolen-Hoeksema offers some very plausible reasons for overeating/drinking in women. Her theories make sense and while I know quite well that there is no "magic pill" for this problem, I feel the info she offers gives me some tools to understand the problem and how I can better help myself. My one criticism of the book would be that I don't recollect any suggestions that the reader supplement the book by working with a psychotherapist trained in women's disorders. For most women, this would be crucial to the healing process.